Uspenski Cathedral

For the Lutheran cathedral in Helsinki, see Helsinki Cathedral.

Uspenski Cathedral (Finnish: Uspenskin katedraali, Swedish: Uspenskijkatedralen)^[2] is a Greek Orthodox or Eastern Orthodox^[3] cathedral in Helsinki, Finland, and main cathedral of the Orthodox Church of Finland, dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos (the Virgin Mary). Its name comes from the Old Church Slavonic word uspeniecode: chu promoted to code: cu , which denotes the Dormition. It is the largest Orthodox church in both Northern and Western Europe.^[4]

Uspenski Cathedral
Finnish: Uspenskin katedraali Swedish: Uspenskijkatedralen[1]
60°10′06″N 024°57′36″E
Location	Helsinki
Country	Finland
Denomination	Eastern Orthodox
Website	hos.fi/uspenskin-katedraali (in Finnish)
History
Dedication	Dormition of Virgin Mary
Consecrated	1868 (1868)
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Aleksey Gornostayev
Architectural type	Cathedral
Style	Russian Revival architecture
Administration
Archdiocese	Helsinki
Clergy
Archbishop	Elia (Wallgrén)
Dean	Markku Salminen

Description

After Helsinki was made into the capital of Finland in 1812, Alexander I decreed in 1814 that 15 percent of the salt import tax were to be collected into a fund for two churches, one Lutheran and one Orthodox.^[5] Helsinki's Orthodox Church, considered to have formed in 1827 with the construction of the Holy Trinity Church, Helsinki,^[6][7] was in need of a larger church than before for a growing Orthodox parish. The construction of Uspenski Cathedral was largely funded by parishioners and private donors.^[8] The cathedral designed by the Russian architect Aleksey Gornostayev (1808–1862). The cathedral was built after his death in 1862–1868 and the work was led by architect Ivan Varnek. It was inaugurated on 25 October 1868.^[8] Used in construction of the cathedral, 700 000 bricks were brought over in barges from the Bomarsund Fortress that had been demolished in the Crimean War.^[5] The iconostasis is painted by Pavel S. Shiltsov.^[8] Based on the wishes of Alexander II, the church was dedicated to the Dormition of the Mother of God (uspenie).^[8]

• 
  Winter Day at Helsinki Market Square, sketch by Albert Edelfelt in 1889
• 
  The cathedral in 1890–1900
• 
  The cathedral and the harbor in 1890–1900
• 
  Nicholas II leaving after visiting for a service on 10 March 1915
• 
  The cathedral and its surroundings in April 2020

The crypt chapel of the cathedral is named after the holy Alexander Hotovitzky, who served as vicar of the Orthodox parish of Helsinki 1914–1917, died a martyr death in the Great Purge and was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1994.^[9]

The cathedral is set upon a hillside on the Katajanokka peninsula overlooking the city. On the back of the cathedral, there is a plaque commemorating Russian Emperor Alexander II, who was the sovereign of the Grand Duchy of Finland during the cathedral's construction. Main cathedral of the Finnish Orthodox Church in the diocese of Helsinki, Uspenski Cathedral is claimed to be the largest orthodox church in Western Europe.^[10]

Annually, about half a million tourists visit the church.^[11][5] Admission to the cathedral was for a long time free of charge, but since May 2025 there is an admission fee of 5 euros to adults outside the times of divine services.^[12][13][14] The acquired funds are directed to restoring the cathedral.^[12] The cathedral is closed on Mondays.^[15]

Icon theft

The iconostasis

The cathedral has several valuable icons. The icon of St. Nicolas – The Wonder Worker was stolen on 16 August 2007 between midday and 1 p.m. in broad daylight while hundreds of tourists were visiting the cathedral. The icon is from the 19th century and is of a rare variant. Originally it was given to the Orthodox Cathedral of Vyborg, from where it was moved to Helsinki during the Second World War. No further details of its origin are known.^[16] The icon, 45 by 35 centimetres (18 in × 14 in) in size, had been placed in a kiota (a glass covered protection frame) and weighed a couple of kilograms. It was on display on a lectern. The search for the icon continues in Finland as well as abroad.^[17]

Another icon, Theotokos of Kozeltshan was stolen in June 2010, but it was later recovered in February 2011 from a hiding spot in the ground. Two robbers had broken into the church twice through a window and on the second time in August they had been caught. Although they did not admit to having committed the first robbery, DNA testing through a blood stain left during the first robbery confirmed it. Nevertheless, the robbers still kept on denying having done it. But in February the next year, one of the jailed robbers had a change of heart and admitted to it all and revealed the location of the icon.^{[18][19][20][21]} It had spent 8 months in the ground but remained nearly immaculate.^[5]

Gallery

Exterior details of the cathedral

• 
  East side of the cathedral
• 
  From air
• 
  Porch on the west side
• 
  Outer detail
• 
  Plaque commemorating Alexander II
• 
  Bell tower
• 
  Main dome detail

Interior

• 
  Interior in 2019
• 
  Iconostasis in June 2007
• 
  Theotokos of Kozeltshan on the right with jewelry donated by parishioners around it in 2017
• 
  Interior details
• 
  View into the dome
• 
  Dome detail
• 
  Ceiling detail
• 
  Plaque from the era of Alexander III

See also

• Helsinki Cathedral
• St. Henry's Cathedral
• Holy Trinity Church, Helsinki
• List of largest Eastern Orthodox church buildings